Welcome to The Verdict Podcast — This episode is called: If lithium was a movie it would be Oscar bait On this episode of The Verdict Podcast editor Billy Bambrough and writers Jack Rear and Allie Nawrat discuss the Oscars at 90, the wonderful world of lithium, and why it is when you get rich you

The UK has rolled out the red carpet to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as he arrived for three days of meetings with prime minister Theresa May, royals, and business and defence officials.

The UK’s Labour party will unveil plans to support for a so-called softer Brexit by backing a rebel Tory plan to keep Britain in a customs union with the EU, in a move that could scupper British prime minister Theresa May’s Brexit strategy.

The UK’s new Renew party — formed with the intention of preventing the country from leaving the European Union — will target supporters and politicians from across the political spectrum, party officials say.

China’s president Xi Jinping would not appear to be looking forward to his retirement after the ruling Communist Party proposed removing the constitutional clause limiting presidential service to just two terms in office.

Transparency International has released its corruption perception index (CPI) for 2017 showing, as usual, a strong correlation between high levels of corruption and lack of protections for the press and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).